This story is set to take place during the time that Avina spends catching up to the group between the Galka AA and the Tarutaru AA.

Avina stumbled a bit as she struggled to make her way towards the island where she believed the next Ark Angel resided… and where her friends were waiting for her. But her vision was fading, as the holy water’s effect was growing weaker with each successive use. Her muscles were tired and felt torn, but yet she was compelled to move, feeling as though the scythe on her back was giving her energy to push forward.
Her vision began to fade from the sides to black, and everything seemed to slowly collapse in around her. Then she hurt a dull, mechanical roar, and came out just in time to see a Groundskeeper emerging from a blue portal, charging at her. It descended upon her faster than she was prepared for, and brought its fist down from above to smash her. Avina managed to dive out of the way as the fist slammed against the hard cermet. She rushed to get onto her feet as quick as she could, reaching back for her scythe, but as she stood up and turned around the Groundskeeper swung with its free arm and hit her hard, which propelled her into a wall. As she slammed into the wall her vision began to blur out again… she saw the Groundskeeper making its way towards her… she tried to stand up but felt her legs go out from under her, and then….

Darkness.

Avina could hear the crying of a child in the distance. She opened her eyes and she could only faintly see herself… but she seemed to be laying on nothing. Getting to her knees she tried to shake off the disorientation she felt, looking around trying to discern where she could be. She lay there alone, her eyes wide in confusion, looking around back and forth.
“Am I… dead?” she whispered to herself, and felt for her linkpearl, which was missing… she stood up onto her feet and focused on the child crying somewhere in the dark void. Avina called out to her, but there was no response… but the child’s cries gave Avina a sense of direction in which to head. She slowly made her way into the void, ever cautious.
Avina began to feel very uncomfortable the more that she listened to the crying, and began to have second thoughts on approaching, but also felt that she had no choice. As she made her way closer, she came to a lit circle on the ground and saw the child crying next to a woman, calling out for her mother.
As Avina stepped into the circle and saw the face of the woman every muscle in her body went tense and she froze in place as she unconsciously gasped.
The woman on the ground was her mother, and the young girl… was Avina, when she was very young.
Avina stood looking over the scene silently, both confused, and traumatized all at once, as painful memories overcome her. Looking over herself as a young girl crying over her mother made those memories rush back to her, but she was too confused and shocked by the scene to let tears fall.
The child shouted, “Why can’t anyone do anything? Come back, mommy… why can’t… why can’t I do anything…,” the girl shouted, sobbing. Avina remembered that as a young girl she had tried to teach herself white magic to no avail during this time… she was too young….
Avina reached her hand out to her child self, and as she did she heard a voice,
“My how some things never change…,” the voice said. Avina recognized the voice… it was her own, but its tone carried a wicked flavor to it.
Avina watched as the scene in front of her swirled away and blurred away into nothing, and Avina expression changed to one more serious.
“Who are you?” she demanded as she reached behind her to grab her scythe, only to find nothing.
“A silly question for you to ask, but not all that surprising,” the voice replied from the darkness. “Surely you recognize whose voice this is.”
“I do, but your style of speech….”
“You find it delightful don’t you?”
Avina narrows her eyes. She began to turn around slowly, scanning the void around her. “What do you want?”
“Oh that is a question isn’t it… but perhaps it is more appropriate for you to ask that of yourself.”
Avina clenched her fists. “I don’t have time for your games, demon….”
“Such strong words,” the voice echoed, as a purple portal flashed in front of Avina and out jumped and landed a figure wearing the Dark Knight artifact armor, with the Scythe of Trials on it’s back. Avina recognized the figure’s face as her own, but distinctly more pale, the hair darker, and purple eyes instead of blue. Avina stepped back, shocked. “And yet,” the figure said, “you say those words with such little resolve. It is becoming a theme for you.”
“Who are you!?” Avina yelled, challenging the figure.
A wide smile creeped across the figure’s face and she burst out laughing, and then motioned her arms wide, as if welcoming Avina. “I forget that you have chosen the path has been one of a fool. Since you seem unable to grasp this concept on your own, I’ll spell it out plainly for you; I am you, pure and unhindered in form.”
“Unhindered…?”
“Indeed. I am you as you were always meant to be. The true self that you are trying to hide.”
Avina shook her head and narrowed her eyes. “I have nothing to hide…”
The figure teleported in the blink of an eye behind Avina, standing close behind her. “Such conviction in your words,” she poked sarcastically. Avina jumped and spun around, backing away. “You were always so much more… convincing, back when you weren’t pretending to care about others. Back when you had real potential….”
“I don’t know what you are talking about….”
“Then allow me to remind you.”
Suddenly Avina looked around and she was no longer in complete darkness, but instead surrounded in the chamber in Palborough Mines where the Quadav kept her eggs. Avina could see herself, as she was a year ago, just after defeating No’Mho Crimsonarmor, her armor covered in Quadav blood. Avina began to make her way towards the eggs, as Kenjii came running in from behind… and then time stopped. The past Avina froze in her position, as well as Kenjii, mid-stride. Avina stepped into the scene, looking around, in complete horror.
“What are you doing…”
Avina’s doppelganger appeared once again, walking past Kenjii with a visible frown on her face. “Such a nuisance he is… surely you remember this scene.”
“How could I forget it….”
“So much rage and power you had in this moment, with the ability to crush the Quadavs in the Palborough Mines for once and for all, and yet this pesky Samurai got in your way.”
“It was the better choice to make….”
“You act like the choice was your own.”
“It was….”
The doppelganger narrowed her eyes and smiled. “Was it? I wonder what would’ve happened if Kenjii hadn’t been there to stop you. Care to see?”
Avina’s eyes grew wide. “No…!”
Avina watched as the scene around her changed into something from a nightmare… all the eggs shattered and destroyed, the remaining organic material burning in flames, and numerous new Quadav warriors collapsed, dead, who had died trying to save their young.
“That isn’t what I would’ve done….”
“Of course it isn’t, keep telling yourself that, Avina,” the doppelganger grinned.
Avina turned around and faced her dark self, “That isn’t what happened!”
“Only because there was someone there to stop you!”
“No…. no, I wouldn’t have….” Avina said shaking her head in disbelief.
“Fear, and anger… these have been the driving forces behind you Avina, like it or not. The sooner you can come to accept these facts the sooner you can accept the truth of your nature….”
“That was a long time ago, I’m different now….”
“And are you really? So different that you would pick up a scythe, knowingly aware that it was plagued by a dark curse? To learn a new technique to defeat Eald’narche?”
“I have to be strong… in order to defeat Eald’narche. Anything I can do to help that cause….”
“Of course. ‘At all costs.’ That’s you’re approach to things. But when have you ever worked to help others, Avina?”
“I…”
Avina saw herself in Balga’s Dais, so long ago, before she had ever become a Dark Knight… running ahead to face the Black Dragon despite Daltan shouting at her to stop… in order to prove herself to him… as she watched the battle unfold, she saw the Black Dragon attack Daltan relentlessly until he collapsed… it was her fault.
“Stop… please…,” Avina begged.
She was shown herself at the top of Castle Zvahl as demons swarmed in on either side, and Kjara stepped in with Azure to save them and let the group continue.
“And then you left her there, alone, to face the Shadow Lord, did you not?”
“She told us to go…”
Avina saw the fight rage on, more and more demons surrounding Kjara, until it was impossible for her to see her anymore.
“No…” Avina whispered.
“You’ve known this to be her fate all along, haven’t you?”
Avina turned and screamed at the doppelganger. “What do you want from me!?”
“To see the monster that you are. To understand that your true power lies untapped…”
Avina found herself in Ifrit’s Cauldron, with a bloodied Kaolla on the ground screaming at Avina and the others to flee… and Avina watched herself at that time, see the strength of the Ash Dragon… and she fled.
“Leaving friends to die,” her doppelganger said. “Hardly something our father would approve of… but the memory that haunts you the most… the source of all your nightmares….”
They were in Jugner Forest now. Avina was there with Daltan and Zetireti… they were having an argument.
“Stop!” Avina screamed at the doppelganger.
“You’ve never wanted to ask yourself, even though it’s been nearly a year. Would you have really killed Daltan had Zetireti not intervened?”
Avina was panicked, “That’s enough! You’ve made your point! I’ve had enough!”
“I’d like to show you what would’ve happened,” the doppelganger said as she snapped her fingers, and the scene played into motion. Avina saw her past self use Blood Weapon, and charge a defenseless Daltan… Avina couldn’t simply stand by and watch, and she sprinted to get in the way of herself in the past… she jumped in front of Daltan and spread her arms out to shield Daltan from the blow.
Her past self’s blade passed straight through her without slowing down… as if it was a ghost passing through solid material… and she heard her darksteel falx stab into Daltan, and saw Daltan’s life force sucked his life out of her, and into her past self.
As she heard Daltan collapse behind her, she could hear the shout of Zetireti in the background, “Avina, how could you!?”
Avina stared at the floor, biting her lip, and she dropped her arms to her sides defeated. Tears were streaming down her eyes as she whimpered to herself, “I would have done it… I…” Avina collapsed to her knees, broken.
“Yes, you would have, and Zetireti would follow soon,” her doppelganger said, and Avina looked up to see Zetireti collapsed onto his face.
“How…?” Avina said, more tears coming.
“Unlike you, Zetireti wouldn’t have been able to seriously fight a true friend, no matter what crimes they had done….”
“I’m a monster… and all this time, I’ve been trying to run away from it all…”
“There is a reason Dark Knights work solo, Avina,” the doppelganger said as she slowly approached Avina. “The desire for power is great, and we have the ability to absorb power from our enemies. Friends merely get in the way, you’ll easily leave them to die, or they can make delicious sources of power and strength. Imagine the abilities and strength you could gain from these… ‘friends.’” She came to Avina’s side and grabbed Avina by the hair and pulled her face us to face hers. “You will never be something different from what you are. This is your inevitable path as a Dark Knight.”
“No!” Avina screamed and reached up and threw the doppelganger’s hands from her hair, and took off running, back into the void again. “This is part of the scythe’s curse! I’m not going to let it control me!”
Watching Avina flee, her doppelganger laughed, “The scythe is only enhancing the anger and the fear that is already there… run all you like,” she said, taking the Scythe of Trials of her back, her eyes glowing a bright purple. “But you can’t escape from yourself.” She began to follow Avina.
As Avina ran into the void, silhouettes popped up left and right… silhouettes of herself, fighting against her friends, strangers… and she was surrounded by endless screaming. She continued to run but was disoriented, she tried to run away from the figures… she could see herself casting absorb spells… shouts from her friends… “What do you think you are doing?” … that was Kenjii… she could hear hisses from Kaolla, followed by a scream….
It was everywhere. Abruptly in front of her, Falgor’s silhouette appeared, pleading for his “little sister” to stop her violence, and then Avina saw a scythe cut through him, and Avina screamed and fell backwards and looked up in horror. Avina began crawling on her hands and knees as the death surrounded her from all sides, pleads for her to stop, and she could even hear her own evil laughing amongst all the chaos… as she crawled she shut her eyes and faced towards the ground. She could hear the sound of a spell casting in the background, and looked up just in time to see a thunder spell unless onto her, and she cried out in pain.
Behind her, her doppleganger’s voice taunted, “There’s no use in running anymore….” Avina’s body convulsed with the shocks, and trembling, she continued to try to pull herself away from her dark self with her arms… until the screams and figures all vanished and a kick came at her side and she collapsed on her chest, and the doppelganger put one foot on Avina’s back and jabbed down hard, and brought Avina to a complete stop. Avina felt the blade of the Scythe of Trials against her neck.
Her doppelganger was irritated. “Are you finished playing your games yet?” She edged the scythe against Avina’s neck. “And yet I still feel you struggling to get away under there,” she said, jabbing down into Avina’s back harder. “You want to keep running, keep hiding from the true you? Or, I know, maybe you’ll just go and try some new risky way to get stronger to keep yourself distracted? Maybe go and threaten some more of your allies like Asina again? Maybe one cursed weapon just isn’t enough for–”
In a flash Avina shot up her hand and grabbed the blade of the scythe, and the doppelganger was taken aback. “No…,” Avina said under her breath. “All that you said was true… but…,” she said, gripping the blade of the scythe harder, her blood spilling over it. “I have been running from the truth… and it has prevented me from ever being able to forgive myself for my past actions… there is no way for me to undo what I have done in the past.”
The doppelganger tugged at the scythe, trying to get it to move, but it wouldn’t shift from Avina’s grip.
“If the cursed scythe is enhancing whatever is already inside of me… I won’t try to fight it but, I will not let this control my life.”
“What are you…,” the doppelganger attempted to say, as Avina pulled the scythe from her grasp.
“Even if it means that I won’t be able to achieve my true ‘potential’… I accept that.”
Her darker self slowly began to dissipate, without even saying a word… and the void began to fill up with light. Avina looked up and gave a weak smile, “Even the smallest amount of light, can defeat darkness…”
The entire area lit up with light, and Avina couldn’t see anything.

Avina could hear her name being spoken. Someone was calling out to her. It was beginning to become more clear….

“Hey, can you hear me!? Answer already! …Avina!? Damnit….”

Kenjii?

Avina opened her eyes suddenly remembering where she was, just as she looked up to see the Groundskeeper charging her. It picked her up in its large hand and held her there, squeezing her slowly. Avina struggled to get one of her hands free and she lifted it up in the air to invoke an Arcane Circle, causing the Groundskeeper to stumble back a bit and drop her in the process. Avina pulled out her scythe and narrowed her eyes, and rushed towards the Groundskeeper and slashed it while it was dazed. Avina was able to avoid direct blows like before, but she was struggling; her body was still worn from earlier.
She was weakened, and focused on casting Dread Spikes. Once it went off, she was able to absorb the enemy’s life force to replenish her own as she received blows… but Avina knew she wouldn’t last long. Sweat beading down from her face, she breathed deeply, and she knew she wouldn’t be able to last much longer.
“After all that… is this it?” she thought to herself. The Groundskeeper prepared itself for its next attack, and Avina braced for the impact.
There was a flash, and flower petals exploded from around the Groundskeeper, causing it to drop to one knee. As the petals fell to the ground, Avina could see Zetireti standing, and looking over at her, his Great Katana already sheathed.
“Zetireti…?” She questioned, somewhat relieved and yet pained to see him after her ordeal.
“Avina, what are you doing? Are you trying to get yourself killed?”
“I should be asking you the same question… I thought…” she said, standing up slowly.
“Nevermind that… Are you okay?”
“I’ve been through a lot worse,” Avina said, and they both look over as the Groundskeeper gives a groan and stands up to fight again.
“We’ll talk about this later, get ready!”
The two ready their weapons as the Groundskeeper makes its assault, but having difficulty keep track of both of them, they quickly gain the upper hand. Zetireti unleashes his Tachi: Gekko, followed by Avina closing the skillchain with Cross Reaper, causing a explosion of darkness to appear above the Groundskeeper shattering it to pieces. Avina stumbles forward, a look of shock on her face, and drops the Scythe of Trials on the ground in front of her. She looks at it for awhile and puts her hand on it.
“What’s wrong, Avina?”
Avina stands up and holds the scythe in her hands. “I suppose I’ll tell you… this scythe had an awful curse on it… but I don’t feel it anymore…”
“Perhaps then the curse has been lifted?”
Avina looks distant, and smiles and nods at Zetireti. “Yes, I think it may have…,” she replies.
Avina thinks to herself about her ordeal… was it real? Was it caused by the Scythe of Trials? How much of it was true?
“Avina, what is it?”
“Was just thinking about a nightmare I’ve been having,” she says as she rubs her hand up and down the scythe. “It’s about time that I moved on, I think.”
“Avina, you’re different now than what you once were. You’ve overcome that darkness in your heart…”
“What makes you say that…?”
“Why are you doubting yourself? Look at you, you’re surrounded by people who trust you and put their lives in your hands. You are different now….”
“Probably not as different as you think but… you are right. It’s time for me to stop doubting.”
“The only one who can control your actions is yourself.”
“But perhaps you should stop doubting yourself too, leaving here without saying goodbye.”
“….”
“Come on, Zetireti. You aren’t going to believe who is waiting for us.”